Pukerua Bay, New Zealandhttps://www.pukeruabay.org.nz
Wed, 19 Dec 2018 00:01:21 +0000en-UShourly1https://wordpress.org/?v=5.0.1-alpha-43972119144324Pukerua Bay 2019 calendars for salehttps://www.pukeruabay.org.nz/2018/12/15/pukerua-bay-2019-calendars-for-sale/
https://www.pukeruabay.org.nz/2018/12/15/pukerua-bay-2019-calendars-for-sale/#respondSat, 15 Dec 2018 02:04:46 +0000https://www.pukeruabay.org.nz/?p=1340Continue reading "Pukerua Bay 2019 calendars for sale"]]>The first batch of 2019 calendars have arrived and been delivered to those who ordered them, thanks for supporting us! We have more still for sale. Below are sample images of January and July. This time we’ve marked handy things on the calendar for you, like school term dates, recycling days, and your friendly local residents’ association meetings, as well as the usual public holidays and lunar phases. All printed on quality stock and yours for only $18. Please indicate if you are local, and someone will drop them off at your house, otherwise its $5 extra for postage anywhere else in New Zealand.

Funds go towards the Residents’ Association, to help pay for things like
annual insurance, the access licence across Kiwirail land for the
community garden, and so on.

]]>https://www.pukeruabay.org.nz/2018/12/15/pukerua-bay-2019-calendars-for-sale/feed/01340Progress on resolving future hall managementhttps://www.pukeruabay.org.nz/2018/11/28/progress-on-resolving-future-hall-management/
https://www.pukeruabay.org.nz/2018/11/28/progress-on-resolving-future-hall-management/#respondWed, 28 Nov 2018 09:15:51 +0000https://www.pukeruabay.org.nz/?p=1310Continue reading "Progress on resolving future hall management"]]>The Pukerua Bay School Board of Trustees (BoT) and the Pukerua Bay Residents Association (PBRA) have met to discuss the future management of our local hall, in an attempt to find a way forward.

We met last Thursday night (22 November) to discuss options for how the hall committee might be involved in the future management of the hall and what role they might have.

The Board outlined its responsibilities as the property manager, and its obligation to develop a policy that reflects those responsibilities and is consistent with the Ministry of Education’s and legal requirements.

The hall committee described the strong feeling of attachment that many people in the community have to the hall, which they have developed over many years of children attending the school, and the hall being the centre of many community events over the past 45 years.

The two groups agreed that everyone in the community shares a guardianship role over the hall and that a relationship between the hall committee and Board should build on that.

We spent quite a bit of time clearing up differences in the interpretation of events in the past 15 months and acknowledged that we could have communicated better over that time.

The administration of the booking system remains a sticking point for the hall committee. They would like to explore other options that reflect their expectations and that would be acceptable to the Board while addressing the Board’s concerns and legal liabilities.

There is genuine goodwill between the two groups to find a way forward. A smaller group of us will continue to meet to find some agreements we can take to the wider group for ratification.

Those present at the meeting were all the members of the BoT, the new school principal Chris Els, deputy principal Andrew Wooster, the Hall Committee and PBRA chair Iain MacLean.

Conor Twyford (BoT) & Iain MacLean (PBRA)

]]>https://www.pukeruabay.org.nz/2018/11/28/progress-on-resolving-future-hall-management/feed/01310Paekakariki Hill Road closed this Friday nighthttps://www.pukeruabay.org.nz/2018/11/28/paekakariki-hill-road-closed-this-friday-night/
https://www.pukeruabay.org.nz/2018/11/28/paekakariki-hill-road-closed-this-friday-night/#respondTue, 27 Nov 2018 23:16:18 +0000https://www.pukeruabay.org.nz/?p=1304Continue reading "Paekakariki Hill Road closed this Friday night"]]>We’ve had a message from NZTA about Paekakariki Hill Road being closed this Friday night. It is a trial to test how effective it is in stopping people using it as a shortcut in heavy traffic, thereby causing more delays when merging at Paekakariki.

Paekakariki Hill Road will close to through traffic Friday 30 November 2pm-7pm

Paekakariki Hill Road will be closed to through traffic on Friday afternoon 30 November, starting at 2pm and finishing at 7pm, or when traffic eases on State Highway 1. There will be access for local traffic only.

The NZ Transport Agency, NZ Police, Kapiti Coast District Council and Porirua City Council are collaborating on the temporary closure, which is a trial to assess its effectiveness for future use.

Signage at the Paekakariki Hill Road intersections with SH1 and with Grays Road will warn that the road is closed to through traffic; local access only.

Manned traffic control points will be in place at Battle Hill Farm and at the Summit of Paekakariki Hill Road. Traffic heading north to SH1 will be turned back at those points.

The extra traffic using Paekakariki Hill Road at peak times are at higher risk of accidents, both on the steep, winding road and when merging with traffic at Paekakariki on State Highway 1. At peak times, significant numbers of vehicles use the hill road as a shortcut and cause delays to both southbound and northbound traffic when they merge onto the highway at Paekakariki.

Paekakariki Hill Road residents and others working or visiting properties on the hill road will be able to enter from both ends. However, they cannot exit at the Paekakariki/SH1 end. They are advised to exit at the Pauatahanui end of the road.

A good turnout of locals and friends netted many bags of rubbish from the beach to the south of Pukerua Bay this morning.

The clean up was organised by the Sustainable Coastlines group (thanks Ben, Oliver and the rest of the crew), with the support of Kathmandu.

Around 30 people started from the pou at 10am and heading along towards Wairaka Rock with bags and a determination to strip the beach clear of rubbish.

The group got almost halfway along the coast to Hongoeka and brought back all the rubbish they found, apart from a very long, heavy plastic pipe and a large sheet of plastic that they couldn’t manage along with all the bags. But they did manage to bring back a large plastic float, which took two people to carry.

A lot of the rubbish was small pieces of plastic, often mixed in with the seaweed near the waterline – hard to see, but if you took your time, you could find a lot of it. There were a lot of bottle caps, small wrappers, pieces of string or rope and lids of all sorts. The pieces might seem too small to bother with, but small pieces are the right size for fish and seabirds to try to eat, and therefore dangerous.

Most of it appeared to have washed up on the beach, rather than being dropped there, but it all comes from somewhere – washed down a stormwater drain or blown into the sea from somewhere – so it’s a good reminder that it is just as important to pick up the small pieces of litter as the big pieces.

Well done everyone, and thanks for all the hard work.

Signing in before heading out Some of the pieces of plastic were very small and hard to see Some of the larger pieces were very obvious Bags filled up quickly with all sizes of rubbish

Coming back with the booty

Just some of the rubbish collected The workers enjoying a tasty lunch laid on by the organisers
]]>https://www.pukeruabay.org.nz/2018/11/24/good-turnout-for-beach-clean-up/feed/01288Repairs starting on SH1 footpath next weekhttps://www.pukeruabay.org.nz/2018/11/17/repairs-starting-on-sh1-footpath-next-week/
https://www.pukeruabay.org.nz/2018/11/17/repairs-starting-on-sh1-footpath-next-week/#respondFri, 16 Nov 2018 19:22:27 +0000https://www.pukeruabay.org.nz/?p=1276Continue reading "Repairs starting on SH1 footpath next week"]]>Fantastic news! Repairs will start on the retaining wall under the footpath on State Highway 1 between the shops and pedestrian bridge next week. The footpath will be closed during this time, and you’ll have to go around it (along Te Motu Rd and Rawhiti Road, or cut through the school).

We received the following media statement from Porirua City Council yesterday:

Pukerua Bay work underway

A section of footpath in Pukerua Bay will be closed for six weeks, starting next week, due to retaining wall work.

General Manager City Infrastructure Mike Evans says the work is scheduled to start on Wednesday 21 November.

“Work will be done on the footpath just south of the pedestrian overpass at Pukerua Bay (between the shops at Pukerua Bay and Te Kura Road) and the footpath will be closed while the work is being carried out.

“For safety reasons, pedestrians will not be able to access the footpath and will need to use the Rawhiti Road overbridge instead.

“The contractor will put up signs and barriers, and we are advising cyclists and pedestrians to be cautious when they are in the area and use the overbridge when they are travelling between the shops at Pukerua Bay and Te Kura Road. During this time, the road shoulder will also be closed, so cyclists are also advised to use the overbridge.

The work is weather dependent but is expected to take around six weeks. “We appreciate everyone’s patience while the work is being carried out,” says Mr Evans.

It was thought the speed limit was going to be reduced, but Capital Journeys has told us that isn’t going to happen.

]]>https://www.pukeruabay.org.nz/2018/11/17/repairs-starting-on-sh1-footpath-next-week/feed/01276Make your Mark Community Workshopshttps://www.pukeruabay.org.nz/2018/11/08/make-your-mark-community-workshops/
https://www.pukeruabay.org.nz/2018/11/08/make-your-mark-community-workshops/#respondWed, 07 Nov 2018 12:08:14 +0000https://www.pukeruabay.org.nz/?p=1245Continue reading "Make your Mark Community Workshops"]]>This month, Porirua City Council are running “Make your Mark” community workshops which are open to the public, to engage with and get feedback from residents about the Growth Strategy and draft District Plan.

In case you haven’t been to one, there’s one tonight (6pm Thursday 8 November) and another next week (6pm Tuesday 13 November). They are good opportunities to find out what’s planned for the region, voice concerns and provide feedback.

The workshops run for about 1½ to 2 hours and light refreshments will be available. They are interactive and visual, and will help council develop the formal Growth Strategy document which will be released in November 2018. It will also provide an opportunity to understand the major changes in the new draft District Plan from the current operative plan, and provide feedback.

]]>https://www.pukeruabay.org.nz/2018/11/08/summit-club-adventures-beach-cleanup/feed/01237Taking orders for our 2019 Pukerua Bay calendarhttps://www.pukeruabay.org.nz/2018/11/07/taking-orders-for-our-2019-pukerua-bay-calendar/
https://www.pukeruabay.org.nz/2018/11/07/taking-orders-for-our-2019-pukerua-bay-calendar/#respondWed, 07 Nov 2018 10:17:31 +0000https://www.pukeruabay.org.nz/?p=1221Continue reading "Taking orders for our 2019 Pukerua Bay calendar"]]>This year’s calendar is about the people of Pukerua Bay, some living and some who’ve passed on. All have contributed to the fabric of this lovely village that we share, and the photos and words reflect that. The calendar is A4 sized and would make a perfect Christmas gift for past residents, family, friends and neighbours, or even framing for posterity.

Print runs will be done in batches as orders accumulate, so please allow some time; we will make sure they arrive before Christmas. We are delivering them ourselves to Pukerua Bay and wider Kāpiti Coast addresses for free, and outside of that area please include $5 for postage for up to three copies anywhere in NZ.

Approval of 2016 AGM minutes

Matters arising

School decapitation: consultation is still continuing; Dale Williams suggests that the feeling is that there may be a new intermediate school by Aotea College, and retain Year 7-8 in the area.

Beach erosion: a report has been circulated with residents. PCC has been working with a coastal scientist around the coastlines, to get a broader picture and help derive long term planning and funding.

Report from the chair

This year there will be multiple presenters, so Iain doesn’t go hoarse.

Village Planning

Students from Pukerua Bay School, Mika, Mackenzie and Freya, presented school ideas for the village plan, and handed out some voting papers for attendees to vote on the ideas identified by the students, e.g. Skate park, Raroa Reserve, Greenmeadows, shade house mural, Scout Hall.

Village Plan Review

Some work was done during the year in preparation for developing a new village plan, which is likely to take a longer-term, more aspirational approach, looking to the future changes from Transmission Gully, SH1 changes, Plimmerton Farm development, etc.

Community Food Forest Garden

Work this year had been on building access to the site along the Muri Station platform, and planting the first shelter trees. A new committee has be set up to lead the development of the garden.

He Ara Pukerua

Presented by Brian Sullivan and Paul FitzGerald.
This was originally called the Green & Gold project. They have a good supply of Jarra timbers from the Airlie Road bridge, which will be turned into bollards and big signs. PCC Village Planning programme has given them $14,500 for this year. The group is Paul, Brian, Ashley and Margaret Blair and Pauline Morse. Paul’s the foreman and Brian does the talking. Community members can contribute!

Pauline: there’s a sample 2018 Pukerua Bay heritage calendar circulating, which is available for order from the website by credit card, and postage or pick-up from the school.

Muri Road safety measures

Presented by Pauline Morse. The number of houses on Muri Road has increased, and the Te Araroa walkway means a lot more traffic and pedestrians. The community has been lobbying for more safety measures for a few years. Now, we have a footpath, better lighting, road markers and paint, Go Slow signs and vegetation trimming. There’s still some works to be finished, curb repairs, vegetation around existing lighting, footpath finishing. Bill Inge (PCC) hopes it will be done by the end of November.

Hall Committee

The arrangement with the School/Community Hall is unusual in that it is jointly managed by the school and the community (our Hall Committee). The Committee has met with the school Board of Trustees twice this year to discuss the future management of the hall and how to free up the money contributed by the community over the years to the school’s accounts so it can be spent on improvements in the hall.

Ahu Charitable Trust ki Pukerua Bay / Community Hub

This group grew out of the desire to create a cafe in Pukerua Bay as a venue for bringing people together and to be a place where community activities could take place. Developing a cafe is a significant undertaking, which will require financial investment and thorough planning. While that is being investigated, the group has run a number of community art and culture activities, such as a Secret Valley Walk, Matariki in the Hall, Art Stars, Pecking Order movie fundraising, crafts workshops, which people from outside the area have attended as well. A couple of activity groups have formed, including a board gaming group and ‘Crafty Tuesdays’ at the RSA. Upcoming events: Christmas On The Field on 16 December 2017.

Te Araroa Walkway

The popularity of this has caused some problems with parking at the end of Muri Road and by the train station. It is more popular than Te Araroa Walkway Trust expected and there is an increasing need for toilets at both ends of the escarpment track, and better signs between the Pukerua Bay end of the track and the train station. The RA is working with PCC and Te Araroa Trust to improve the signage.

Submissions

We made a submission to PCC’s Annual Plan, and urged them to fix the erosion at the beach, repair the collapsed footpath between the shops and Wairaka Road and take action to mitigate the impact of the increased number of people coming into Pukerua Bay on Te Araroa Walkway.

Pukerua Bay Civil Defence

Presented by Robyn Moore PKB Civil Defence Coordinator. The PKB group has a new co-coordinator, Ewan MacLean. In the past 12 months there have been a lot of slips around the region, cause by the Kaikoura earthquake and exacerbated by the wet weather at the same time. This shows the need for PKB people to be prepared for 15 days, not three. Water tanks have been installed at the school and the library. We should spread the word around and get water tank storage installed at home.

Boxing Day Beach Smash

Steve Wright organised last year’s Boxing Day event, which the RA underwrote.

Erosion on Beach

We are supporting beach residents in their efforts to get PCC to prevent the situation from getting any worse, but there has been no progress on this.

Reserve protection on coastal track

We are supporting efforts to raise awareness of the need to protect native animals and plants along the coastal track towards Plimmerton, including the erection of a sign about little blue penguins in the area.

General business

Engine brake noise: David Olsen, resident from Te Pari Pari Road. Wants PCC to create a by-law to prosecute drivers using engine brakes in and around the 50 km/h zone. Hundreds of trucks a day go through Pukerua Bay. NZTA has a forum for truck drivers and can request they don’t use engine brakes, but can’t enforce anything. Police can’t prosecute without a PCC by-law. On still nights the sound can carry several kilometres. Dale Williams replied that it would be difficult to enforce a by-law on State Highway 1. PCC will review traffic bylaws once Transmission Gully is open, but that will be at least two years away. It will not be a quick process.

Speed restrictions through Pukerua Bay: Dale: movement on SH1 may depend on whether Transmission Gulley is tolled. If so, NZTA is required to provide a free alternate route, which means this road would become SH1A, which will restrict PCC’s ability to implement changes. NZTA will not move on 70 km/h zone between Plimmerton and leading into Pukerua Bay.

Road reserve on Gray Street: discussion earlier in the year around the usage for trail walkers parking. These and similar issues to be raised at November RA meeting.

Election of Executive Committee members

New nominations: Guy Marriage and David Olsen. All existing members keen to remain on the committee.

Conclude

Meeting finished: 9.15 pm

]]>https://www.pukeruabay.org.nz/2018/10/29/2017-agm-minutes/feed/012002018 Annual Report of the chairhttps://www.pukeruabay.org.nz/2018/10/29/2018-annual-report-of-the-chair/
https://www.pukeruabay.org.nz/2018/10/29/2018-annual-report-of-the-chair/#respondMon, 29 Oct 2018 01:06:50 +0000https://www.pukeruabay.org.nz/?p=1196Continue reading "2018 Annual Report of the chair"]]>This has been a very productive year for the Residents Association. The He Ara Pukerua heritage group has installed information boards at heritage sites, the community garden and food forest has plants in the ground, and we have supported a number of community activities. Unfortunately, the year’s achievements were marred by a dispute with the school Board of Trustees over the management of the hall.

Village planning

The Residents Association (RA) relies on the Porirua City Councils (PCC) Village Planning programme to provide money and support for several of our major projects in the village. Large projects, such as the He Ara Pukerua heritage project and the food forest would be very difficult to achieve without the funding from this programme. The funding allocated by PCC for 2017–18 was:

He Ara Pukerua $14,500

Community for forest garden $7,500

Ara Harakeke shared pathway extension $45,000 (not spent, and has been carried forward to the current financial year)

He Ara Pukerua heritage project

As reported at last year’s AGM, Porirua City Council (PCC) allocated $14,500 in the Village Plan for the He Ara Pukerua Heritage project for the 2017/18 financial year. The He Ara Pukerua steering group has been meeting almost every fortnight. It is continuing with the work needed to bring the project to fruition and has identified sites for three large information boards and 14 additional marker bollards.

Over the past year, there have been some tangible signs of progress with the project. On 19 May this year the information plaques were attached to four bollards along He Ara Harakeke. The plaques cover the building of the highway between Pukerua Bay and Plimmerton, the Airlie Road bridges, Taupo Swamp and Winstone’s Brickworks. Timbers from the old Airlie Road bridge were relocated from the PCC nursery in Seivers Grove to Pukerua Bay. Along with timbers already held here, these have been cut to form 12 further bollards and timbers that will form frames for three large signs to be located at the western end of Ocean Parade, the northern lookout and near Muri Station. The metal frames to hold the information boards have been fabricated.

The information to go on the sign at the western end of Ocean Parade has been written and is with Ngāti Toa for a final check before going to the designer for layout, then for production and installation. Several of the plaques for bollards are nearing readiness for layout design.

A further $14,500 was allocated in the Village Plan for the current financial year. Most of that funding will go on the installation of the large sign and bollards.

In addition to the heritage project, the steering group produced the He Ara Pukerua calendar for 2018. This proved to be a successful fundraiser for the Resident’s Association, covering ongoing costs associated with the He Ara Pukerua Heritage project and also the Food Forest. A calendar is being produced for 2019.

Community garden and food forest

The food forest has made major progress this year, and several working bees have resulted in the food forest becoming a reality.

The garden is being developed on permaculture principles, and the garden group had a visit early in the year from a permaculture practitioner and advisor from Manawatu, Gary Williams, who advised them on practical aspects of developing this site. Approximately one third of the area has been planted in the beginnings of an orchard, along with their nutrient-fixing support trees, and a group of feijoas to operate as a screen between the garden and some neighbours.

PCC allocated $7,500 for the 2017/18 financial year, most of which has been spent on a large pile of bark mulch, 35 fruit trees (pears, apples, nashis, plums and feijoas) and around 70 support trees. There were several working bees to prepare the site, plant and prune the trees and build wind shelters for them.

PCC has allocated a further $7,000 for the current financial year and this will be spent on buying more fruit trees and plants to add to the existing area and to expand a new collection of different fruit trees. There is a small, active group who do the planning, led by Robert Oscroft, and around 20 people who help at working bees. Everyone is welcome to join in.

Transport and movement

Muri Road safety improvements: The work on the safety improvements on Muri Road was completed this year. This took much longer than both we and PCC expected, and we appreciate the efforts of PCC in ensuring the work was eventually completed

Ara Harakeke path slip repairs: The slip along State Highway 1 between the shops and Wairaka Road got steadily worse this year, but this is another example of work that involves several agencies, particularly PCC and NZTA, and getting resolutions to these issues always seems to take a long time. PCC has allocated $45,000 in this year’s village planning budget to repair the surface of the path as part of the extension of the Ara Harakeke shared pathway. We understand NZTA will start to repair the slip before the end of 2018.

Te Araroa wayfinding signage: In response to complaints about people walking Te Araroa walkway getting lost in Pukerua Bay between the train station and the end of Muri Road, we have worked with PCC and Te Araroa Trust to improve the signage on the route along Sea Vista Drive and across Muri Reserve. Signs have been designed and are being manufactured, and will be installed when PCC has obtained all the landowner permissions.

Community/School Hall

The Pukerua Bay Hall Committee is currently a sub-committee of the Residents Association and has, in one form or another, been managing the out-of-school use of the Community/School hall by the community since 1973. This is an arrangement that was originally established in a 1973 Deed, and continued in the Pukerua Bay School Board of Trustees’ (BoT) hall policy. The BoT this year decided to take complete control of the hall’s management, included its use out of school hours use. They made this decision without consulting the Hall Committee, which their policy requires them to do, and gave the reason that the current Health and Safety at Work Act required them to take this step. The Residents Association’s legal advice was that they did not need to do this, and we told them we would consider taking legal action against them if they did not negotiate a resolution to this issue with us.

We are currently in discussions with the BoT to organise meetings on the future management of the hall, and expect this will start this year.

We have also obtained from the BoT a detailed breakdown of the handling of the money collected from the hire of the hall in the past nine years, which was another source of friction between the Hall Committee and the BoT. We intend to discuss with the BoT as their report is incomplete and does not align with how their policy says the money is supposed to be recorded and spent.

This has been a very disappointing and unnecessary outcome, and we believe this conflict between the Board of Trustees and Residents Association could have been avoided. We remain hopeful we can resolve this issue, for the good of the wider community and its long-standing interest in the hall, but it will take effort and good will from both sides.

Report from Pukerua Bay Hub

The Residents Association is happy to support the efforts of the Hub to improve the community life in Pukerua Bay, and appreciate the connection we have through having Hub representative Beccy Davis as a member of the RA committee. She provided the following report.

Pukerua Bay Hub (PKB Hub) was established in early 2017 by a group of locals passionate about providing opportunities for the community to connect within Pukerua Bay. In the past 12 months we’ve achieved the following:

2017 Christmas on the Field – more than 1,000 people came together on a perfect summers day to celebrate and sing. This event is planned again for 1st of December 2018.

Matariki 2018 – bigger and better than our inaugural 2017 event. About 400 people celebrated Matariki with more than 200 counted on the walk through Secret Valley. 500 stars were created as part of the collaborative community art project and used to decorate the Hall. This year the event was opened by Mayor Mike Tana and special guest Miriama Kamo read her new children’s book. We are very appreciative of the PCC Creative Communites Grant, which makes our Matariki celebration possible.

13 workshops have been organised with topics as diverse as children’s art, harakeke weaving, book-binding and wholefoods.

Three regular groups have been well attended – Rotten Luck Fermentation Club, Crafty Tuesday and Basketball in the Bay.

The PKB Hub team have also organised a number of fundraisers, including the Waitangi Day BBQ, a quiz night and the sale of water tanks, produce bags and stainless steel straws.

We submitted a proposal as part of the RA’s village planning bid. PCC has allocated a special grant and will work with PKB Hub to help us understand how loneliness may affect our community, and to find more ways to create opportunities for greater community connection. What’s driving this project is our belief that connected communities are happier, safer, more resilient, and better prepared to look after one another.

Going forward we would love to achieve more with extra support and involvement from the Pukerua Bay community. For example, help with events like Christmas on the Field, help with planning and running workshops and groups, people to get involved with the PCC funded project, and extra governance support to help us grow. If you are keen please get in touch by emailing hello@pkbhub.org.nz.

Thanks to everyone who has attended our events, workshops and groups and also encouraged us during the past year! Keep up to date with what’s happening at http://www.facebook.com/PKBHub

Engine braking

We kept up our communications with PCC and NZTA on this issue and ran a community survey to gauge the impact of trucks’ engine brakes on residents. We were able to use this information in our discussions with PCC and NZTA, and NZTA has agreed to erect more ‘no engine braking’ signs in Pukerua Bay. We are waiting for their contractors to install them.

Penguin sign

We were very happy to continue our support for a sign at the beach warning people that little blue penguins come ashore in Pukerua Bay and are in danger from dogs that are not kept on their leash. The sign was finally installed in June and we contributed $260 towards it.

Coastal erosion

This continues to be a serious concern along part of Ocean Parade beach. A PCC contractor placed compacted fill along the bank where it had been damaged by previous storms. Residents were initially sceptical that it would be effective, but it seems to have withstood the battering from storms this year, with only a few repairs required. However, it is only a temporary and incomplete solution and we will continue to work with PCC and residents to ensure a permanent solution is put in place.

PCC is preparing a long-term (50-100 years) coastal management strategy and is consulting with communities about this. A number of residents attended a workshop with PCC’s advisers and we urge all affected communities and interested residents to get involved in the ongoing work on this plan.

Council planning submissions

We contributed submissions to PCC and Greater Wellington Regional Council annual plans, and met with PCC planners who were holding initial discussions with communities on their new District Plan. This is due out for consultation in October or November this year. This plan will affect how Porirua develops over the next 10-30 years and we will stay actively involved in its development. We would encourage interested residents to get involved, too.

Acknowledgements

I would like to thank the members of the Executive Committee – Jonathan Harker, Kate Dreaver, June Penhey, Brian Sullivan, Beccy Davis, David Olsen, Pauline Morse, Paul FitzGerald and Guy Marriage – for the work they have done during the year. We have achieved a lot this year. I would also like to thank the PCC staff and PCC and Greater Wellington councillors who attend our meetings and support our community in many ways.